GENERAL NEWS.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 138, 29 September 1870, Page 7

GENERAL NEWS.

Returns show that last year no less than 2758 horses were killed for food in Paris.

A Girl, nine years old, has drowned herself in the Manchester and Ashton Canal, through fear of being beaten. From the year 1862 to 1867. according to a recent publication, 1268 people were killed and 4426 wounded by railway accidents Advices from Naples state that five instruments of music, in a perfect state of preservation, and bearing a great resemblance to the modern flute, have just been discovered at Pompeii The materials are silver aud ivory.

A curious atmospheric effect, of the nature of a mirage was lately observed at Ostend. Above the masts of each vessel visible from the pier was seen another, inverted, with the tops of its masts resting, as it were, on those of the real ship. In Detroit, Michigan, recently, a Fenian placard was issued, which wound up with the usual " God save the Green." Some wag, with an eye to truth, affixed the word " horns" after the " green," thus making it read " Grod save the Greenhorns."

In these days of baby-farming one in not surprised to meet with ttie following advertisement, taken from the " Liverpool Mercury" :—": — " Notice to the mother of the baby Chesty St John, which was left in Chester on the 20th invst. — The child is now dying."

Mary Lears, aged twenty-two, a servant at Penrith, has committed suicide by drinking a solution of heads of phosphorous matches, through despondency at having to appear before the magistrates to affiliate a child. A verdict has been returned of temporary insanity. Another fire in Constantinople has destroyed 1500 houses in the poor quarters ; several thousands have lost everything. Among Yankee ingenuities, there is a machiue set up at Rutland State of Vermont, which cuts slate pencils at the rate of 20,000 in an hour.

An American paper states that a railroad conductor in Maine has been on the road twenty years, has travelled 700,009 miles, and has never met with an accident.

The famous Twelfth of July passed off peaceably enough iv Ulster on Tuesday. The Orangmen held their processions, demoustrations.andspeechifications," as usual, and the force of military and police despatched to the various points of danger prevented any collision between them aud the Roman Catholics.

The Commissioners at Scotland Yard, London, have issued sets of boxing-gloves to the police at the various section-houses in the Metropolis, and it is stated that the young constables take kindiy to the exercise in spite of this hot weather, strengthen ing their muscles and " improving their style" by practice in the leisure hours between "Ehe beats.

Mr Holrnan Hunt has returned to Jerusalem, after an excursion of three weeks to Nazareth, a journey performed in order to advance the important picture on which he has been engaged since bis return to the Holy Land, and which now occupies his attention and energies. He is making good progress with this work, and is much improved in health.

As the steamer Lochgoil was on the passage from G-lasgow to Kilunun, and within five minutes of the latter place, the steward's assistance was called to a female passenger, who had taken sud lenly ill. The nature of the illness, however, was soon made evident when an extra passenger, without ceremony or assistance, landed on deck, with a cry of distress at exposure to the new world.

The boat race between Kplly and Sadler took place lately over the course from Putney to Mortlake, for £200 a side. Sadler won by five boat-lengtbs.

The " G-alway Express " alleges that dui'ing the last fortnight a considerable number of free and independent electors of that immaculate borough have received anonymous letters, each of which contained two pound notes neatly folded in a blank sheet of paper. The recipient, in most instances, it is alleged, is an elector who voted for the Government candidate at the last election.

The "Cape Town Standard and Mail " reports that the ship Montrose, Captain Anderson, which left Zanzibar on the 12th of March, has arrived in Table Bay, and that Captain Anderson states that he had a conversation with Dr. Kirk, the political agent at Zanzibar, who had informed him that he had just received a letter from Dr. Livingstone, that the doctor was quite well, and would shortly make his appearance at one of the European settlements.

A disgraceful fracas took place in Hyde-Park, London, between Major Kane and Major Gordon, two officers in the army. There had been some disagreement between them, and they appeared in Rotten Row, armed with canes. Major Kane laid op?n the left side of Major Gordon's head, and the laitter cut open his antagonist's right temple. The police arrived after all wias over. The combatants were taken to the hospital. M. Alphaud" an engineer at Paris, has invented a "steam girl." For the relief of anxious mothers we beg to assure them this is not a " fast " young lady, but a new machine for paving and ramming granite cubes. The "girl" runs on four wheels, comes down like a

sledge hammer of any "monkey' power desirable, and is a literal "stunner." Those who wish to make eyes at the yonng lady will find her at work daily in the Rue Grenelle, St. Germain, Paris. — " Gaulois." . The " Financier " states that out of the 370 passengers in the train which met with the terrible accident at Newark, eighty -seven had railway passengers' assurance tickets, for which the total amount paid was less than a sovereign. Of these eighty-seven persons five were injured.j ured. All the injuredj ured are entitled to maintenance during illness, either by a sum paid down or by weekly payments, according to the scale at which they insured. A few days ago lightning struck the powder magazine of Santo-Spirito, at Veuice, where 600,000 lbs. of that material are stored. The conductor received electric discharge, and its top was literally melted away, and the whole length twisted, but no further damage was done.

The other day there was arrested in the boulevards a "noble lady," who at seven in the morning was clad but in black silk stockings, white si k shoes, and a lace shawl. Hardly had the " Blue " secured her when a carriage, with powder footmen, drove up, and requested the " Marchioness " to return to the bosom of her family.

A young woman gave birth to a child in one of the Lutheran churches of Watertown, Wisconsin, on Sunday, sth June. The startling event occurred during the morning service, and so little disturbance was made that but few of the congregation were aware of what had happened until "meeting was out." — "New York Post."

There was landed at the "West Quay, G-reenock, fro'ja the brig H -Mirictta, of Grreenock, arrived from Newfoundland, a small boat made of seal skins on a framework of wood. The boat is over 20 feet long, fiat 'mitonn-d, and is remarkably light and buoyant. There are eight seats in it, and it is reputed to be able to carry 20 persons comfortably.

A very shocking accident occurred at one of the coal-pits belonging to the G-auchalland Coal Company, Kilmarnoek. Mary Paterson, a girl about twelve years of age, was sitting on the bell crank connected with the pumpiug-engine when she fell off, aud the shaft striking her, literally cut her in two. Deceased was daughter of John Paterson, a collier residing at G-auchalland. The "Lancet" says: — "It is a curious fact that of the passengers in the train which met with the terrible accident at Newark, all, or very nearly all, who were asleep at the time escaped uninjured — nature's anaesthetic ensuring them, not only against fractures and contusions but even against the bad effects of shaking and concussion." A prize of £100 has been offered to the University of Oxford for the best essay in refutation of Materialism. It has attached to it a curious condition which will somewhat perplex competitors The arguments used are to be " independent of those of Hegel, and of what is called the Spiritual Philosophy which had its rise in Germany." The judges are to be Dean Mansel, Dr Payne Smith, and the Saviliau Professor of Astronomy. Lord Clyde wrote his will at his Club on a sheet ofnotepaper, in half-a-dozen lines, and it was duly proved ; and there is a story of an ostler who being at the last gasp, crawled to the corn chest, raised the lid, scrawled his parting injunctions on the wood with a piece of chalk, got a postboy and a stableman to witness his signature, and so died. The box lid was takeu off its hinges, and satisfactorily proved in Doctors' Commons.

Dr Mutter eontinueshis examinations of adulterated tea, and shows that a large quantity of tea rubbish is still on sale. One sample of "finest new season's Kaisow" was found to contain the enormous quantity of 37.4 per cent, of oiinerai matters, chiefly iron filings ; and another " fine Oaufa Congu" consisted of a mxture of re-dried tea leaves, straw, fragments of matting, rice husk, and willow leaves. The wholesale price of these dainties is said to be from \\ d per lb.

One of the recent fashions of the fair sex is to patronise pet serpents, which are to be had very plentifully in Paris. At the open-air concert on Friday, iv the Champs Elysees, this historic animal proved itself more sublte than any beast of the field. It quietly uncoiled from the arm of its mistress, and made itself at home on that of a neighbouring lady, who naturally, in consequence, approached the hysterical point. The owner came to the rescue, claimed her green-and-yellow spotted darling, observing it was not venomous, but only obeyed the laws of nature of" changing its skin."

A statutory meeting of the Trustees of the Dollar fntsitution was held on Monday at noon in the board-room of the Institution — the Rev. Mr Grunn, chairman, presiding. Two massive and handsome silver cups, inlaid with gold, wiere laid upon the table. These had bsen sent from Hong- Kong by Wye-a-Ktivanir (some of whose family had been educated at Dollar), and were intended aa poizes for the best general scholars -T-one boy and one girl. It was agreed to keeps the" cup. within the walls of the Institution, but to engrave the names of the winners each year upon them, and further, to have a medal struck which the winner of the cups •would be presented with.

According to the caU-ulations < i Professor Wapj aus, the average ( ur i tion of human life is 2 Jl9 yea> s in Austria, 3680 years in Sardina, £I*lo years in Prussia, 31"16 ye irs in Saxony 32*61 years in Bavaria, 3472 years in Holland, 3692 years in England, 38*35 years in Belgium, 4036 years in France. 40"49 years in Denmark, 40*86 years in Sweden, and 4364 years in Norway. At the Sunderland Police Court, on Monday, a man name John slater was charged with entering the cabin of the ship Cornish Trader, lying in the South Dock. Captain Tait said he was awoke by the struggles of the prisoner, who who had stuck fast in the cabin skylight, in his endeavour to cuter that way. The chief constable said the prisoner had been brought up for vagrancy, and since then had been living with prostitutes in the lower part of the town. The Bench committed him. to prison for three months.

We are told that the latest folly of fashions is keeping the mouth open, and that the only difficulty is, that fashion not having officially decided to what extent the lips are to kept apart nobody seems to know the correct thing, and the consequence is that some wore the mouth slightly open, whilst others are to be seen grinning from ear to ear. Surety this must be a result of aristocratic patronage of Sunday at the "Zoo." It was noticed that on those occasions the monkey-house was the most frequented portion of of that favourite place of out-door recreation. — " Figaro."

A young woman, Miss Clipton, aged twenty-two years, who manages a re-freshment-house for her mother at Barnes, close to the railway station, came by her death on Saturday through the dangerous pi-actice of reading in bed. Miss Clipton had closed the establishment ami retired to bed, taking with her a novel which she read for some time. It is surmised that she fell asleep, and that the candle ignited the bed clothing ; but in any case so fearfully burned all over the body was the poor girl that she died within four hours of the discovery of her fearful condition.

Mrs Allan, wife of Robert Allan, fireman, Smith's Land, Arbroath Road, left her house to go a message on Monday evening about six o'clock, leaving her son David Allan, ten months old, alone in bed. The child during her absence had scrambled out of bed, aud pushed its head through the spars in the back of a chair that stood near by. When the mother returned she found the child almost choked, and although ita head was extricated immediately it died in about a quarter of an hour.

In reference to the fact that the Board of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge refused the grant proposed by the committee for the Revision of the Authorised Version of the Bible to the Convocation Committee, the " John Bull " says not only is this true, but the Board have censured the Standing Committee for lending the rooms, and the latter, in consequence, have driven forth the Bishop of Llandaff and his company. The " John Bull " adds, it is evident that the matter must be reconsidered, for it is preposterous that fifty people should decide the question one way or another.

A copy of Masklin's splendid edition of the bible, profusely illustrated with about 11,000 engravings and drawings comprising specimens of every school and style, was sold last week by Messrs Puttick and Simpson, of Leicester Square, for £165. This valuable collection of pictorial art was formed by the late Mr John Gray Bell, of Manchester, and was handsomely bound in 63 large folio volumes.

A Manx cat which had been taken about six weeks ago by rail from Edinburgh to Glasgow, wrapped up in a bag, left its temporary abode in Glasgow three weeks ago, and arrived on Monday at its former residence, Viewforth Road, Edinburgh. Its reception however, was most unfortunate, it having been attacked on its arrival by a strange dog, and was driven away fr Jin the door,pursued and nearly worried.

The ample provision which Charles Dickens made for his family consists of some £43,000, invested in public securities, — half the value of the copyright of the great novelist's books, estimated at £20.000, — his modest house at Gadshill, together with its contents, — and the interest in " All the Year Round," bequeathed to his eldest son. Mr. Dickens was at all times a munificent and free-handed man, and never made the attainment of wealth a first object.

Hollowuy's Pills. — The sufferings to which delicate females are subjected by ignorant practitioners, and the no less serious evils they endure in consequence of self-neglect, are terrible to contemplate. Let us not then be thought officious or presumptuous if we recommend to them with friendly earnestness this mild but reliable remedy for all functional derangement's. Fpr all the debilitating disorders peculiar to the sex, and in every crisis and contingency perilous to the. life and health of woman, youthful or aged, married or single, this great regulator and renovator of the secretive organs aud the nervous system* is an immediate cure.